“Can we not call it getting married again?” I ask. “We’ll be divorced, but I’d prefer for us to call it a renewal of vows. Even after the divorce, deep inside we’ll still be married, right?”
“You’re right. Renewal of vows it is. And I promise you that with those new vows, I’ll become a completely new man for you.”
I forget about my dessert and kiss him. “I like the sound of that, Mr. Watson.”
Chapter 29
Alex is leaving today, but even though we only got to spend a few days together, he helped me better cope with the pain left behind when Jenna was taken away from me. At least he took off the edge.
We spent a lot of time inside, mostly holding each other and watching movies that made us laugh. We didn’t want to be seen outside in case it got back to his mother.
A lot has changed and more will change in the future, but for a moment it felt as though everything was the same, and we are not getting a divorce.
But as it gets closer to the time when Alex will leave, the reality hits me. He makes it sound so easy, like we can just pick up the pieces of our lives and continue on. But I’m finding it hard to believe that Marcy will release her control over him and her money that easily. I don’t want to think about it, but I have the feeling there’s still a lot of pain headed our way.
But with the fear also comes the hope that it might work, that we will get a chance to start over as Alex promised.
I don’t know when we’ll see each other again.
Since it’s our last day together for a while, I’ll be making him a fancy breakfast. Most of the weekend, it was him taking care of me. Now it’s my turn.
I smile as I watch him sleeping, his hands tucked under the back of his head. He’s snoring softly. His forehead is wrinkled in the middle between the eyebrows as if he’s thinking about something important.
Turning away, I slide out of bed, careful not to wake him. I’ll be making his favorite pancakes, poached eggs, and all his favorite breakfast treats, but I want it to be a surprise.
I lift my phone from the nightstand and glance at the screen. It’s seven o’clock. I had planned on waking up an hour ago, but I was still so exhausted. It will take time for my body to destress.
Alex is leaving at eleven, and two hours later, I have another visit scheduled with Jeffrey. He agreed to see me again. Drake Hoffmann advised me to let Jenna go, but I need to try and convince Jeffrey one more time to change his mind.
My circumstances might hinder the court from handing Jenna over to me immediately, but as long as I have Jeffrey’s permission to eventually file for guardianship, I can work toward that.
Inside the bathroom, I’m about to brush my teeth, but I’ve run out of toothpaste. I toss the empty tube into the trash and tiptoe back into the room to get Alex’s cosmetic bag. I find it buried underneath his T-shirts and pants.
I get out of the room without waking him. Back inside the bathroom, I unzip the moss green canvas bag and ruffle inside in search of his toothpaste.
I lift it out, but when I’m about to zip the bag back up, my eye catches something familiar.
It looks so out of place in his bag that I reach for the end and slide it out.
A satin ribbon, the kind one uses to wrap around a ponytail.
The color sparks recognition, powder blue with white polka dots. I’ve seen something similar somewhere, but I can’t remember where.
The more I stare at the ribbon in my hand, the more my stomach tightens.
Alex coughs and I jump. I stuff the ribbon back into the bag and zip it up. I don’t have time to return the bag to where it was before, but maybe he’d think he forgot it in the bathroom.
A minute later, my plans for a surprise breakfast are dashed when he walks into the bathroom to brush his teeth.
While I brush mine, he walks up behind me and gives me a peck on the cheek. “Good morning, wife,” he says against my skin.
“Not for much longer,” I tease and spit out the toothpaste.
“You’ll always be my wife.” He presses another kiss to my skin. The warmth of his lips sends warning shivers down my spine. I don’t understand the discomfort, so I shake it off.
He tries to meet my eyes in the mirror, but I look away.
“What’s wrong?” he asks. “You look sad.”
